Tuesday, May 15, 2012
—Camnong Bual Ubol, a Buddhist priest who lived and worked at Wat Dhammaram Temple in Stickney Township, has been arrested on a Cook County Sheriff's Police warrant for aggravated criminal sexual assault, Cook County Sheriff Thomas J. Dart announced today.

In October of 2011, Barbara Blaine from SNAP (Survivors Network for those Abused by Priests) contacted the Cook County Sheriff's Police to investigate allegations that Ubol, age 61, was responsible for fathering a child with a then 15 year old during the time he worked at the Wat Dhammaram Temple. Sheriff's Police immediately began investigating the allegations and it was learned through a paternity test, which was completed in 2010 but never turned over to authorities, that he had in fact fathered a child with the alleged victim.

At the time Sheriff's Police were contacted, the whereabouts of Ubol were unknown. According to a member of his former Temple in Stickney Township, Ubol's last known address was the Wat Buddhavipassana Temple located in Long Beach, California; however, according to sources, he had since been removed from the temple and it was believed he was residing in Anchorage, Alaska.

Last week, Sheriff's Police obtained a warrant for the arrest of Ubol and he was taken into custody by the FBI without incident Friday evening at LSG Sky Chef, located on the 4300 block of Old International Airport Road, in Anchorage, where he worked as a dishwasher.

An extradition hearing took place yesterday evening at 6:30pm (Chicago time) where Ubol chose not to waive extradition back to Cook County. The Cook County Sheriff's Police are seeking a Governors Warrant for Ubol's return to Cook County. This process has been initiated by the Cook County Sheriff's Police Departments Central Warrants extradition officer. The Sheriff's Office also requested he be held with no bond; however, he was issued a $30,000 cash bond with a third party custodian requirement. A status hearing is set in Anchorage for June 14th. He is currently being housed in the Anchorage Correctional Center - East, in Anchorage, Alaska.

Ubol was born in Pissanulok Province of Thailand, is a U.S. citizen and had been a Buddhist priest in the United States since 1995.